A nonprofit in South Florida is making an impact in both the environment and the lives of underprivileged children.
The Issue
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization, over 70% of the world’s fish species are either fully exploited or depleted. Most of this exploitation and depletion is happening as a result of ignorance and inadequate marine conservation education. Children are growing up to see the oceans as a playground rather than as a precious and fragile resource that we need to protect for future generations. Thus, Fishing for Families in Need (F4FN) focuses on educating and empowering socio-economically disadvantaged youth to become ethical anglers who know and understand local rules and regulations and seek to minimize damage to the environment while still enjoying the sport of fishing.
F4FN’s mission is to use the sport/skill of fishing as a mechanism to immerse socio- economically disadvantaged children about their local marine environment; while also working with fishing tournaments to collect, clean, and donate already caught fish to local soup kitchens to minimize potential waste that might occur at these types of events.
Responsible Angling Education Program
In this program, F4FN uses the sport of fishing as a mechanism to teach socio- economically disadvantaged children about the marine and/or freshwater environment in their local area. The programs run once a week for an 8 week period in the Fall and Spring as an after-school program for children ages 6-18 years old. Programs are led by a Program Director in the different locations, and the volunteers are primarily in Middle School, High School, or College. Children are taught about marine conservation, the perils of overfishing, invasive species, and ocean pollution through an educational curriculum developed by Duke University Marine Science professors. In addition, the children are taught the basics of the sport of fishing including: how to rig and cast rods, knot tying, how to throw a cast net, and how to clean and fillet fish properly. Each program emphasizes local fishing rules and regulations, fishing safety tips, and some special tips on how to fish in a more sustainable and responsible manner. Every program also incorporates educational field trips such as deep-sea fishing trips, beach clean ups, snorkel trips, and trips to local marine rehabilitation and nature centers. At the end of each 8 week program, every child receives a graduation certificate as well as a new fishing rod and tackle box donated by F4FN’s generous supporters. F4FN has taught over 1,750 children how to fish while being good stewards of their local marine environment.
Fishing Tournament Donation Program
Another important program of F4FN involves providing local soup kitchens with fresh fish from local fishing tournaments to provide a nutritious meal while hopefully reducing potential waste that can occur at the tournaments. Every year hundreds of fishing tournaments are hosted around the country and even the world, thus F4FN have partnered with multiple fishing tournaments over the years to allow their participants to donate a portion of their catch to local soup kitchens. Their volunteers gut, clean, and filet the fish, which is then dropped off at local soup kitchens, where it is cooked and served. Those in need can seldom afford this incredibly valuable protein source, and more often than not they are the ones who need it most in order to supplement nutrient-deficient diets. Since 2007, F4FN has provided over 2,300 hot meals of fresh fish to the patrons of a local soup kitchen in South Florida.
F4FN’s multi-week programs create hundreds of responsible youth anglers, provide amazing volunteer opportunities for the community, and positively impact local marine and freshwater ecosystems. The children in the classes become strong ambassadors for environmental protection and continue to educate their family and friends long after the classes end. Thus, creating a movement for change in their community focused on marine conservation and better fishing practices.
Help F4FN safeguard the future of marine ecosystems by giving today!
Link to Donation Page: https://www.globalgiving.org/projects/f4fn-fund/
Testimonial from Volunteer: “Volunteering with F4FN at first started out as just a project to get my community service hours, but it’s so much more. While volunteering for F4FN I felt as if I was really making a difference in these children’s lives and the community.”
Website: www.f4fn.org
Facebook: @F4FiN
Instagram: @f4fn
Twitter: @F4FN
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This piece was edited and posted onto SEVENSEAS Media by: Bharamee Thamrongmas.